The competitive history Of Vittorio Caneva: from the beginnings to the present day.
In Italy in 1989 there was no structure that provided valid support to those who wanted to approach road car racing. Born in Asiago (Vicenza) on March 12, 1957, a great rally enthusiast since 1972, he began participating in his first rallies in 1976 with a Fiat 127 Gr. 2. In 1977 he participated in the Triveneto Rally Championship, finishing 2nd in the final class classification. The same year he gets some victories also competing with a VW Golf GTI and an Opel Kadett GTE in the various national rallies. In 1979 he participates in the A112 Trophy obtaining flattering placings and at the end of the championship turns out to be 7th overall and 3rd under 23. The following year with an official car of the Jolly Club he participates again in the A112 Trophy, gets two important victories: Costa Smeralda and San Marino, three second places, a third place and a fourth place ending the racing season 2nd in the final absolute ranking. This result, however, does not allow him to claim an official seat and in 1981 he is forced to stay on the pole. In 1982 the miracle is accomplished and he is hired by Citroen Italy to drive the Visa Group B in the Italian Championship. During the year he obtains the following results: 8th in San Marino, 10th overall and 1st in Group B at San Remo, 11th overall at the 4 Regioni, 16th in Biella thus resulting at the end of the championship 2nd in Group B these results obtained with a scarcely competitive car will make the Caneva-Citroen duo known at European level.
From Citroen to Lancia in the World Rally Championsip
In 1983 he continued his relationship with Citroen Italia always with the Visa Group B, the results to remember: 4th overall at the Piancavallo rally, 5th overall in Aosta, 8th overall at the Rally Colline di Romagna and 11th overall in San Remo. In 1984 he devoted himself always on behalf of Citroen Italy to the development of the Visa 4-wheel drive, obtaining over all a 3rd place overall at the Rally del Gran Sasso, unfortunately the length of the races of that year causes a very hard selection and he is often forced to retire for mechanical pins, however the sprints are not lacking such as the PS won in Piancavallo or the impressive times of the World Sanremo. The Citroen-Caneva binomial is interrupted at the end of the year when the 1985 programs appear hazy, so Vittorio leaves Citroen for Ford where he will drive the Escort Turbo Group A, a car unfortunately unreliable that will allow him only a few times to see the finish line. His best results include 6th overall and 1st in Group A at the Targa Florio Rally and 2nd overall at the Maremma Toscana Rally. In 1987 he is finally hired by Scuderia Jolly Totip to compete in the World Championship in Group N. He gets great times but luck is not always on his side, some unclear breaks and a few races gone wrong jeopardize his results and despite promises for the following year he finds himself having to look for something to continue. In 1988 he still competes in some World Championship races with the cars that Lancia supplies him and the Scuderia Race Day, unfortunately in the middle of the season he decides to retire from racing.
“I decided to create a structure
that still allows me to continue living my passion,
perhaps no longer as an actor, but as a director.”
In 1989, the ” Vittorio Caneva Rally School” was born.
In 1990 he participated on an occasional basis in the Asiago City Rally with a Ford Sierra Group N and easily won the group as well as 4th place overall, but the desire to return to competition did not return and he preferred to devote himself to the new idea of the Rally School. From 1990 to 1994 he managed the Pista Lago Losetta in SESTRIERES where safe and sports driving courses were held on ice. Since 1996 he has worked full-time with Piero Liatti as a personal consultant in World Rally Championship races with the Subaru 555, SEAT sport, Ford Martini and Hyundai Castrol teams. After the world championship experience with Liatti is over, he devotes himself to following students in the World Rally Championship and in the meantime continues to refine the Rally School, including a novelty hitherto unknown in rallying, telemetry. This allows him to work in a completely innovative way and the results are not slow in coming. In the years 2005/2008 he follows Gigi Galli in almost all the world championship competitions, without, however, ever leaving the activity of the Rally School, which to date (2018) boasts as many as 18 world and 9 European titles without counting the national and minor titles impossible to quantify.
